Celebration of Life

Wow, yesterday was actually my 40th birthday and I am admitting it publicly on this blog! The reason for my admittance is so that I can share with you a little about my experience on this day here in Zambia… let me start by saying… I am overwhelmed with emotion and hope. I have never, and I say never felt this blessed in my entire life… I think this day has been a culmination of sorts as to what God has done and is doing in my life… and today I celebrate… we can celebrate LIFE – LIFE to the fullest!

My “special” day was welcomed early with our regular morning workout. Starting to really feel 40, my body was less than interested to slug away at the “Insanity” Cardio Circuit, however, despite my grumbling I made it through, worked up a sweat and returned home invigorated (hahaha). I was warmly welcomed into my home filled with balloons and decorations that had been smuggled into the hockey bags from Canada. Plans for a cake, a water fight and trip to town were in order. Soon children began to arrive at my door with letters, hugs and birthday wishes… for someone who prefers to stay under the radar on her birthday; I accepted my inevitable fate and soaked in all the love they were willing to offer.

One of the highlights of the day was a visit to Pastor John’s church supporting the “Stir the Fire Ministry” which provides a program for the most poor and vulnerable children in the Twapia compound. Scott and I had planned this the previous week as a special opportunity to bless the community and partner with his amazing ministry. Some of team members had donated money so that we could provide the ministry with a full meal for some 80 plus children that day… Wow… watching those children eat to their hearts content, knowing that this was there only meal that day and perhaps for a number of days, touched my heart in a way that words cannot describe. The pastor and his wife, graciously invited us in to their ministry and blessed us!

Our return to Grace Academy was special… special in a funny way. You see Sid and Katy Braaksma are pranksters!!! Silly me, I did not lock the house. As we entered our home, Katy went scurrying over to her place, declaring she had nothing to do with it… right! Our bedroom was filled with dishes, plates, cups, bowls etc.. all filled with water… there was no way in unless you started to dump all the water… needless to say it was a very funny moment and my carpet took a long time to dry!

As the day progressed, I continued to receive letters, hugs and many birthday greetings… it was also starting to cook up on the thermostat a little and I was okay with the anticipated water fight. The fight ensued late in the afternoon and I lost the battle!!! A little refreshing way to end my day in the sun. Shortly after I dried off, there was a knock at the door and one of the beautiful Grace girls came to greet me and offer me another birthday letter. This letter, along with all the others, moved me in a way that it is difficult to describe. I would like to share some of her words with you to highlight the hope and bright light that these children are in a broken world…

“Dear Auntie Angela – my lovely mom – Happy Birthday… I love you so much
May the Lord bless you. May He give you long life. May you have birthday memories which shine throughout the year. And thank you for showing me your love and kindness and thank you for being a friend to me. You are a blessing in my life. When you go to Canada, I will miss you so much. May the Lord provide everything you need. Thank you for taking me for walks. Here is a verse for you… Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and truth. 1 John 3: 18”

Okay, so she gets it! Do I get it like her? She is a 10 year old orphan, abandoned and rescued! She knows the hope and life in her Saviour. Here I am 40 years old and just really starting to “get it”. My God loves me so much, this I know (just like the children’s song… Jesus loves me this I know)… but why get so wrapped up in myself… my 40 year old self?

Needless to say, this is a special birthday that I will NEVER forget. I hope and pray that God also never lets me forget what He has taught me today and for the past 40 years (some people are just slow learners!)

With that said… if this is a taste of my future… I am SO IN! What an awesome way to start a new decade and new chapter in my life. Praise be to God.

Today, I sit and write the remainder of this part of the story. I have had some time to process and reflect on what actually happened during the team visit to Arthur Davidson Children's Hospital (ADH).
We started our ministry on the malnutrition ward, which amazingly was only ¼ full. Frequently when teams visit, the ward will have 75 – 150 children in various stages of malnutrition recovery. Today, there were only 36 children. Something to be thankful for??? So the team began to go room by room handing out small readers, workbooks, toy cars and of course... sweet suckers! Many team members stopped to speak with the family member caring for the child and pray with them. Now... you need to understand that this hospital is certainly not like those back in western canada! Food is not provided for the child let alone the family members, there is often two or more per crib and the conditions are less that desirable for “wellness” and healing. Overall the team moved through the ward, feeling calm and moved by the gratefulness of the children and families for their small token of kindness.
We were then able to go through a number of other wards, spreading a little kindness to many other children with the supplies we had left over. We ministered to children and families on the surgical ward, the intensive care unit, the outpatient ward and in the general hallways! Many people stopped the “muzungus” to see what treats they had to offer in their bags. The surgical ward was an area that caused a number of teams members to ask the question... “what is that”... There were many patients that has various degrees of horrific burns to different parts of their body as well as others who were receiving some form of orthopedic treatment from accidents, congenital conditions or from being beaten up... yes, children, beaten... by other children, by parents, by uncles etc... I could not resist taken a picture of the traction device that I saw.... two rocks from the grounds outside used to stabilize an ankle with his leg was in traction after being broken in a pedestrian accident... Check this one out!!

Now for those of you who know me well... babies are my passion! So I asked if we could go to the “nursery” and preemie ward. There they care for all sick babies, whether they are term, small for gestation or preterm. It was hard to differentiate when you saw them as the care seems to be so very basic for them all. The hardest and most interesting moment was when I looked into one room and observed three babies on one overhead warmer. Two were very small and feisty, one was ashen in color, term size but lifeless. I then saw three nurses start to aggressively handle the baby, try to stimulate it, draw the large oxygen tank towards the warmer and slap on the chest with their hands in a form of chest compressions. Of course, I was desperate to grab a bag and mask and start on my NRP train! They informed me that the baby was about 8 hours old and had not really been breathing for awhile now! They were correct.. I watched and prayed for this little one for 3 minutes while it remained breathless and lifeless. Suddenly they started to give some form of high flow oxygen by a tube and connector into one nostril while holding the jaw, closing the mouth and other nostril. CPAP??? They continued to randomly slap the small chest. Much to my dismay and perhaps horror, the baby started to breathe... struggling, indrawing, gasping but breathing. At this point, I left the room, to pray that this child would not survive, as in the event that it “pulled” through, the damage would be significant. I do not know what the end result of this little life is... but I trust in a God who controls and knows all things. In His hand, I committed this life. This picture shows the three babies. The one at the far back is the one I have written about.

At the end of our visit, the team was able to bless the hospital with medical supplies and food for the families there. We met with the hospital executive director who was humbled and grateful for our generosity. Many of the supplies were collected and donated from myself and another team member. The simplest of support goes along way in hope and faith. The food was generously and lovingly processed, packaged and donated by the Fraser Valley Gleaners. Scott has been working with them through his Bible classes and they were more than willing to ship many boxes of dried soup mix and apple chips for the team ministry. Bless those who bless others!!

Reflections:
Now after giving you the details, I cannot help but stop and reflect deeply on what this means for me, my family, the ministry of SOH and for us all!
My first thought is that I desire to have my heart and my family's hearts broken for the things that break the heart of God. A children's hospital visit is an intentional situation to see for ourselves heartbreaking need. But what is our capacity to respond to these overwhelming needs?
God is God. He is dependent on no other to complete himself or His work. What is His purpose in inviting us to participate? I believe that He invites us to show love for Him by loving those He loves, that teaching us about small things, simplicity, pure truth, hope and faith, allows God's transformation in our own souls. He desires us to serve to buffer us from our own self centeredness... service is for our benefit... the world only needs one Saviour!!
Life is fragile... no matter where in the world we are. We are also not in control at any time -a concept that I continually forget. If life was stable... I wouldn't need God's help. Brokenness is God's gift to me. It is a place where I will discover who I really am. It is a fire inside that burns with passion, a call to rise – to defend the weak, the broken, to fight injustice, to hold the wounded, to pray for the suffering..
What breaks your heart? Consider your deepest place of suffering. What have you learned there that you value?
Blessings,
the Visser tribe of five

Unfortunately some of the pictures did not load on the blog... if you would prefer to receive email updates.. send me an email with your address at visser5@shaw.ca

Surreal moments of ministry

the last two days has found the team, serving and ministering to the community of Ndola in various forms. Our family was part of two of those opportunities that I would like to share a few highlights from.

Yesterday, we went to visit a surrounding village farm. One of the dorm parents at Grace Academy had prearranged a visit with this farm where we anticipated about 39 - 45 individuals. We were prepared to provide each one with a warm hoodie or blanket and some dried apple chips from the Fraser Valley Gleaners. Well word apparently got out quickly that the "muzungu visitors" were going to arrive and the numbers doubled in size. Little did we know that out of sheer desperation, many people were going to be present and leave empty handed. Deep in side my soul ... I thought... wow, they are desperate for a hoodie? how can that be? You see, this village has never had "visitors" come to serve them. They were some of the poorest of the poor, children dressed in rags, homes no bigger than 12feet by 12 feet housing up to 9 family members, little to no food on a daily basis and no forms of employment to provide even the smallest provisions. So yeah.. I guess they are desperate for a hoodie!

We gathered in their primitive church and called people forward from the "list" of names. They received a hoodie or blanket, bowed with thankfulness and then with incredible hospitality prayed for us and sang a worship song together. As the afternoon progressed some of the villagers followed us around as we toured their homes and were welcomed into their simple means of housing. Those who had not received a hoodie, were clinging on desperately to the hope that if they walked with us and told us their names, we would return one day soon to bring them something... anything...

(okay... wanted to add more pictures and tell you the next story... but it will need to wait) TIA - internet is not so speedy right now.. stay tuned

settling back into zambian life

we have now been in zambia for 4 days and in many ways it seems like yesterday that we were actually living here. Little has changed yet much has changed. Our travels here were great and full of adventure as per usual. God is faithful and provided some rest and wellness for the journey. We were warmly greeted by dear friends and family when we arrived. One of the first comments from a dear caregiver was " I have prayed for three years for the Visser family to return to Zambia - today God has answered my prayers". What a special greeting for us all.

Grace Academy and Buseko have flourished, grown, developed and overall exceeded all expectations for our family. Our children were is awe by the development and the kids! Many of the Grace kids did not recognize our kids, especially Jordyn... they think her curly hair is fake!
The team we have brought from abbotsford is doing a great job and having the time of their lives. They kicked off their activities with a Grace Academy olympics.. a fabulous day in the hot african sun.

Occasionally I find my self wondering what has God given me as a result of our missions exposure and experience? What has He entrusted to us? We have stepped out in faith to do this and have seen the reality of God on so many levels. We also have has a unique opportunity to experience firsthand things that others only read about in books or see on TV. We have lived in a foreign culture among people who act and think differently than us. As a result we have changed. For the rest of our lives we will carry with us the sights, sounds, and impressions we experienced. We have also developed an awareness of the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of ourselves and others around us both here in Zambia and at home in Abbotsford. But above all... we have learned how deeply loved we are by our Father... which moves us to deeply love others....

TIA

well we are back at our home away from home... God is good.. safe travels all around, every one well and REALLY excited to get at it full out tomorrow.. Note to self and others... don't book with Ethiopia air any time soon... few errors, arguments, lost luggage and poor service.. not sure how they win awards for airlines?

we had a good day touring in London although any team members slept a little on and off.. definitely some jet lag happening...

today was a highlight of reunions, and joy... a surreal experience already for our kids... many did not recognize them, especially Jordyn.. they wanted to know who plated her hair (braided) because they did not think it was realy (it was very straight three years ago)... so cute... well I have much more to say but a tremendous amount of unpacking and preparing for tomorrows sports day awaits...

for now... we are thrilled to be here.. and all is well

I have to learn how to import my email list into shaw on line, so I will not be able to send an email for a day or two....

lots of love and african wishes

The Vissers